The EmployAble team are at Wembley Stadium!

After taking the walk of champions down Wembley Way, we are excited to be part of the BASE (British Association for Supported Employment) 2025 Conference on Quality Support, Lasting Outcomes. Yesterday’s first day began with a warm welcome from BASE CEO Laura Davis and Gerraint Jones-Griffiths from Learning Disability Wales | Anabledd Dysgu Cymru, followed by two inspiring keynotes.

The first, from Kris Foster and Joanne Dewar, focused on Project Nemo, which is working to make the Fintech industry accessible. Joanne explained that Project Nemo is named after the clownfish with a little fin from the Pixar movie, who, after a time, is just seen as playful, loving and cute. Kris, who has overcome many challenges growing up with autism, said his passion comes from “just wanting a purpose and the why in life,” with a goal to give parents of learning disabled and autistic children hope and to impact the next generation.

The second keynote, from Alicia Mcdonnell, Group Head of EDI at MAG (Airports Group), focused on inclusion. She said: “Inclusion doesn’t happen by accident, it happens by design… it’s an intentional action.” Alicio’s ‘why’ is driven by her son Theo, who was diagnosed with autism, inspiring her commitment to creating opportunities for all. She explained it is “not about lowering the bar, but about widening the gates,” highlighting the moral, business, social and human rationale for inclusive recruitment.